KOTA BELUD: A unique, traditional Gotong-Royong Monginsada took place at Sungai Woriu Tambulion Ulu, Kota Belud last Saturday.
The Vice Chancellor of Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Professor Datuk Dr. Kasim Hj. Mansor officiated the start of the event by striking the gong three times in the presence of the local community.
For one day, over 300 villagers fished in the yellow zone of this river due to the lifting of the ‘tagal’ or prohibition, a system in practise for generations amongst the indigenous peoples of Sabah.
In his speech, Dr Kasim said the beautiful vista surrounding the area consisting of Mount Kinabalu, the river and the paddy fields was indeed a blessing and a treasure worth preserving.
He encouraged the local community to continue their excellent efforts here and to aim for attracting high-end tourists who would appreciate visiting this beautiful countryside.
“This programme which was visibly made possible through the combined elements of unity, mutual respect, and combined dedication for preserving traditions amongst the local community.
“It was good to witness the synergy between the local community and various government agencies to ensure the tagal system prospered as an integrated tool for ecosystem management,” he said.
In fact, he noted that local villagers had long been practising food security through the tagal system here in Sabah.
UMS, he assured would be on hand to support the community through training and research. He was pleased to note several other UMS staff in attendance. This included Assoc. Prof. Dr. Jurry Foo, Director, Centre for Co-Curriculum and Student Development who has been researching the tagal system for years.
Also present at the programme were Dean Faculty of Business, Economics and Accountancy, Assoc. Professor Dr. Mohd. Rahimie Abdul Karim, and Director Borneo Tourism Research Centre (BTRC), Dr. Balvinder K. Kler. Several UMS alumni were also in the audience, doing their part to support this programme.
Earlier this month, the faculty had arranged for exchange students and staff from Akita International University, Japan to experience rural tourism in Tambulion Ulu as part of their educational visit to UMS.
Meanwhile, Dr. Balvinder shared that earlier in January she was invited as one of the judges for the traditional huts competition at Taman Rekreasi Bombon Tambulion Ulu.
With the opening of these traditional huts and the two guesthouses which can accommodate 25 guests, the area is set to welcome both day visitors and tourists.
She noted that the Community Based Tourism (CBT) programmes set up by the state government back in 2014 continue to flourish as communities have gained an understanding of how tourism can be beneficial for their socio-economic well-being as well as for conservation.
Last December, BTRC in collaboration with the Sabah Tourism Board (STB) hosted a CBT Symposium at the Azman Hashim Gallery. The Organising Chairman of today’s programme, Boniface Doni Jiran presented a paper on the CBT experience representing the Kadamaian Tourist Association (KATA) as one of the eight panelists.
Professor Datuk Kasim congratulated the organising committee and thanked them for inviting him. Later, he walked over the hanging bridge across river where he released juvenile fish provided by the Fisheries Department into Sungai Woriu.
Elsewhere, the village community spent the day fishing and picnicking, and the heaviest fish, a Pelian, weighed in at 1.772 kilograms. Further information can be found at the Berita Bombon Tambulion Ulu KB facebook page.
